Fox chief ponders future of 'Fringe,' 'House,' 'Terra Nova'

Fox met with TV critics Sunday to tout its upcoming slate of midseason shows, which includes American Idol, Alcatraz, a Bones spinoff and Touch, a new Kiefer Sutherland drama.

But most wanted to know about current series: The network must soon decide on whether to pick up new seasons of veteran drama House and freshman fantasy Terra Nova. And the network addressed changes on The X Factor, which completed its run with half the audience of Idol amid criticisms of host Steve Jones and judge Nicole Scherzinger.

Future Fringe seasons seem doubtful, and a new deal must be struck if Bones is to return, though Fox wants it back.

Entertainment chief Kevin Reilly also ruled out one proposed new series. "There will not be a Glee spinoff," he said, "but those (main) characters who graduate will set us up for a cool season" next season, and current stars including Lea Michele will return.

As for other series, "It's hard to imagine the network without House," he says, but sharply declining ratings and high costs make it harder to justify continuing after eight seasons. "We haven't had the big meeting about what we want to do. It's no secret last year we said it was going to be a close call and (this would) probably (be) the last year, but we haven't made that decision," he said. "Should it be the last season, it's not going to be an unceremonious finish." (NBC Universal, which produces the series, said Friday it was unlikely to move the series to its own network)

Terra Nova is another question mark. "We've done a good job of avoiding these big decisions," Reilly joked, but he emphasized outsized expectations for the costly series, which is filmed in Australia, and says it was the fall's second-highest rated new drama among young-adult viewers. "If the show hadn't worked, I still wouldn't be apologizing."

But a large crop of producers and somewhat schizophrenic storytelling posed hurdles. "There were a lot of chefs in the kitchen, that did make it a bit of a challenge, (and) I wish it was creatively more consistent," he says. But the show is profitable and sold well in overseas markets. Given a lengthy production schedule, to make a fall debut, "We won't be able to drag our feet on it too much longer."

As for X Factor, he declined to confirm speculation about replacing on-air personalities. "There are changes, but I can tell you I have no idea what they're going to be." Hosting, "as we know, is a much harder job than meets the eye. Everyone now has come to realize the value of a Ryan Seacrest. Whether Steve's the guy or not, it comes under the heading of growth in general. There will be tweaks to the show, but we're happy to have it and expect to have it for a long time."

Speaking of Seacrest, what about his future? His Idol contract is up after this season and NBC is wooing him for a broader long-term deal (he already has a pact with NBC-owned E!). "It's hard to imagine the show without Ryan, we want to keep him and have him," Reilly says, describing discussions as merely contract negotiations he expect will be wrapped up very soon.

Reilly also praised low-rated Friday series Fringe, happy to not "turn our backs on genre fans." But "the hesitation in my voice is it's an expensive show, we lose a lot of money on the show, and at that rating on that night it's impossible to make money, and we're in the business of making money." Though he said that doesn't amount to an early cancellation, signs aren't good. But "please don't start the letter-writing campaign right now, I can't take it. That's another decision we have to make." And again, they need to plan far enough ahead so that producers can wrap up the series if this is indeed the end.

In other news, Fox announced it will create a new division to create not-ready-for-prime-time "alternative animated" series to run online, on game consoles and on demand, and partly as a late-night block on Saturdays at 11 ET/PT, where Fox formerly aired Mad TV but has been programming with repeats for the past few seasons. The network plans four new series per season starting in January 2013, and though not designed as an incubator for Sunday's prime-time block, Reilly says it could well turn out that way. (The Simpsons began life as short segments on The Tracey Ullman Show). A former programmer for Adult Swim, which has successfully tapped into a young late-night audience with similar programming, will run the unit.

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